Friday, April 29, 2011

One of my relatives went to Berlin last week and brought back a small package with cookies for me. They're called Apfel-Groshen, and were small, round cookies with apple and almonds in them. I ate them for breakfast while taking photos of myself in the forest. Weird start of the day, but now I have a more updated photo of me if you check out the page Fanny who?.

Thursday, April 28, 2011

I bought a beautiful little bunch of radishes today. The greens where turned into soup along with some potatoes, and the radishes themselves were braised.

After buying, but before braising, I met up with the people from Our life in Sandarna. We drank coffee in the sun and they shared a whole lot of stuff about their travels to Portland. They even gave me a guidebook, how nice is that?! I was reading it on the tram home and the girl sitting next to me started talking to me. She was from Montana and had lived in Portland for 4 years, but now she was in Sweden studying, I loved that she started talking to me, that is so unusual here.

What's your favourite way to eat radishes? I still have half the bunch left, so bring it on!

Tuesday, April 26, 2011

Have you seen my post Call for advice on Oregon and Washington? If not, head over there and give me your best advice regarding these two states. I've already gotten some emails from wonderful women who took there time to write to me, thank you for that!

Pizza salad and pizza dough bread.

I spent a day in Örebro last week, having a meeting and hanging out with my boyfriend. After some sightseeing up in the water tower, we headed for lunch at a very typical Swedish pizza place. I don't know how it is in other countries, but I've gotten the impression that pizza places and kebab+falafel places are usually separated. Not in Sweden. Almost every pizza place offers kebab and sometimes falafel, but it's rarely the star of the menu. It wasn't here either, but with few other lunch options in our price range we dug in and were pretty pleased over all.

- No tahini sauce, I asked for tomato and that was OK but not great.
+ It's HUGE, I only managed to eat half, and I can eat a lot. Good bread and falafel. Very nice pizza salad.

The wheather has been amazing the last couple of days. I've tried to maximize my sun intake, and the other day we went to the beach and brought one of my family's dogs, Sputnik.

Sunday, April 24, 2011

Me and foodgawker might not have exactly the same idea about what a beautiful food photograph is, but there sure is a lot of lovely photos to find on the site. I would be happy to see more photos with natural looking light and more wide angle ones, but the lack of that isn't really keeping me away. I thought I'd share my favourites with you! I favourite any kind of food as long as it looks pretty, or is something I would like to make a version of someday, so it's not only vegan. You'll find my favourites here.

Thursday, April 21, 2011

I bought a beautiful bunch of carrots the other day, and wanted to use every single part of it, the greens included. I have never used them before, but I made a simple pesto out of them and it turned out pretty good! I just blended the greens (raw, probably should have steamed them a bit, they were kind of tough), sunflower seeds, oil, some garlic, salt and pepper until creamy. Now I have an ice cube tray filled with pesto, can't wait to use them!

Sunday, April 17, 2011

Veganmage has done it before, and now there's even a cow milk-version available in the supermarkets. I'm talking about Delicato Ball Ice Cream! If you're thinking "what on earth is a delicato ball?", you've been missing out. Delicato ball is chocolate ball videly sold in Sweden, and known to most vegans as the always available sweet treat. And since it's also sold at IKEA, it's becoming increasingly famous amongst vegans all over the world.

So, back to the ice cream. How to make it? Just take any non-dairy ice cream (preferably vanilla or chocolate) and mix in a mashed delicato ball, or more depending on how much ice cream you're using.

Wednesday, April 13, 2011

In exactly 3 weeks, I'm off to new adventures! I'm going to Oregon and Washington, where I will spend 6 week hitching around and experience amazing places and meeting wonderful people. At least this is what I'm hoping for, so a little help from your side would be very appreciated! I know that a lot of you reading this lives in the area, or have visited it, so if you would be so very kind to drop me a line (either in comments or to my e-mail), it would mean a lot to me. I'd like to know about where to eat the best donuts, buy the coolest vegan candy, find the cheapest burgers and milkshakes, but also which corner in the city is your favourite, where you prefer to hike and the best places to go for a swim. Bring it on, I'm so excited!

I love travelling. Here I am, very happy during a hike in beautiful Kapadokya, Turkey 2010.

I spent this incredibly sunny and warm Monday in Stockholm, walking around with a friend I hadn't seen in a while. I've been in Stockholm, the capital of Sweden, a number of times but always with a mission or commitment of some sort, so I haven't spent that much time just walking around. After a couple of hours walking and talking, we ended up at this bakery called Tevere, that except the coffee and cakes also offered vegan (and non-vegan) pizzas! That is quite uncommon in Sweden, you usually will have to eat a vegetarian one and just ask to omit the cheese = boring! We managed to fit on the small out-door seating area, and sitting there totally blinded and heated by then sun was as nice as the pizza it self. And that's not saying little, considering how much I've been longing for the sun these winter months. There were about 6 vegan pizzas on the menu, varying from simple ones with veggies and olive oil to faux meet ones with non-dairy mozzarella cheese. Of course I went for the last, and got the Salamino which was topped with vegan salami and ham, and mozzarella cheese. The crust was thin and crispy, and with a generous spread of tomato sauce, just how I like it!

I could have wished for more exciting topping choices, and the pizza salad was bland and oily The price was also a bit to much for my taste, but over all it was a great experience. You didn't have to wait long for your food to arrive, and the pizzas are big, you will definitely not walk away hungry!

You will find Tevere at Skånegatan 81, Stockholm.

Are there any great places for vegan pizza where you live or do you have to resort to the "vegetarian pizza without the cheese"?

Tuesday, April 12, 2011

When I was a kid, I remember loving the kind of casserole consisting of a meaty sauce and mashed potatoes. We never ate it that often, and then we kind of forgot about it, moved on to more exciting foods and I didn't think about it until last year. That was when I read about Shepard's pie, and realized that my memories from the childhood was exactly that, just never named back then. So I made my own vegan version, and I don't remember what I put in it that first time, but it wasn't that great. So I forgot about it once again, until now. I suddenly found myself at the stove, making soy protein filling in one pan, boiling potatoes in another and assembling it all in a third. It came out great. I don't have a recipe for you, there's plenty out there already and I'm not a recipe maker. But one thing really did stand out - I put a tablespoon or two of vegan cream cheese in the mashed potatoes. It was excellent. How do you make Shepard's pie?

Friday, April 8, 2011

I'm spending this month in Gothenburg living at my mothers house, the very same house where I spent my first 19 years. It's nice and all, being in a home that really feels like a home and not just a place where someone is living temporarily. But when it comes to food, I feel a bit overwhelmed. I've been spending the last year with kitchens and pantries that left a lot to wish for. I've become a master in making something out of nothing. Here I find myself looking in to a pantry (or two!) stocked with almost everything I could wish for, and I really don't know where to start cooking. Breakfast has been easy though, so I'll start with that. Have you been eating something good lately?

Wednesday, April 6, 2011

This kind of seaweed topping has been available in Sweden for as long as I can remember, and now that IKEA has started to sell it I wanted to tell you about it! It's made out of some kind of sea weed, and is shaped into small delicate balls. The taste is salty and very ocean-like. It's best eaten cold and is lovely with avocado, on sushi or in skagen mix. Have you tried this before?

Sunday, April 3, 2011

Spending 3 months in Reykjavik didn't make me a local, but I still hope that this small Reykjavík guide will be helpful for some traveller looking for good food.

Supermarkets:

Bónus - the cheapest and most wide spread supermarket on Iceland. Though not the most well sorted one, it has all the basics and a bit more. You can find basics, veggies, fruit, soymilk, tofu and beans here. They also have an organic section with more fancy stuff such as coconut oil, grains and tahini. If you search thouroughly, you will be able to find most of what you need.Map with all their locations on Iceland.

Mai Thai - Situated right where down town ends, it's close by and easy to find. They don't only sell Thai food, but also Japanese and Chinese and probably from other countries as well. Here you can find various kinds of noodles, spices, soy sauces and condiments, as well as a smaller selection of fresh produce. They have vegan spring roll pastry in the freezer and ginger candies to die for.See it on a map.

Yggdrasill - An organic supermarket which is combined with a very sterile and non-cosy café. They have the stuff you can usually find in organic stores, but their produce and fridge/freezer section leaves a lot to wish for. Very high prices.See it on a map.

Á næstu grösum - Probably the most well known all-vegetarian place on Iceland. It's a restaurant down town serving up some different dishes everyday, always offering a soup and a special of the day. You will always be able to get a plate of vegan food from the menu, and then there's a home made bread to kill for, hummus and chutney which you can eat as much as you want from. The food has varied from really yummy to bland the times I've been there, but Friday's are all about Indian food (at least right now) so that's probably a safe option!See it on a map.

Sushibarinn - Known for the best sushi in Iceland, and even though I haven't tested any other place, it might just be true. Their vegetarian mixed plate can easily be asked for to make vegan, and what it includes varies from time to time depending on what ingredients are fresh that day. You will get at least 5 different fillings/toppings and they always taste good. The sushi restaurant is connected with the café Kofi Tómasar Frænda, so you can order and eat in there for a cosier environment.See it on a map.

Café Babalu - Situated on the main tourist street leading up to the church, this place somehow stands out from the crowd. Bright orange with wall paintings and a nice but small roof terrace for the warm days. The atmosphere inside is welcoming and more like a living room than the regular café, with sofas, books and board games. For vegans, they offer cold and warm drinks, soy milk for coffee and a big slice of carrot cake that is OK but not fantastic. Sometimes they also have a vegan brownie (which I can almost swear is made by using the basic chocolate cupcake recipe from Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World, tastes exactly the same!). Prices are OK, and they have free WiFi.See it on a map.

Locally grown produce:
Amazingly, considering where Iceland is situated, you will be able to find a selection of locally grow vegetables all year around. They grow tomatoes, cucumbers, cabbage, potatoes, carrots and more in green houses heated by geo-thermal power, and you find it at any grocery store.

Friday, April 1, 2011

This weeks Friday Favourite will be a little short, because I'm just in the middle of my move from Iceland! I left Iceland yesterday morning and am now spending two days in Kumla, Swedento get some stuff before I move on to Gothenburg tomorrow. I will stay there for one month, with my family. I grew up there, so it will be fun to get back!